The first news of a retail tenant at Dock 79 arrives today, with the news that "The Salt Line," a seafood restaurant from the group behind Sixth Engine, Town Hall, and the Dubliner, will open in the Spring of 2017.

Featuring a "New England-inspired menu in a casual and relaxed 3,500-square-foot space with ample outdoor dining and an outdoor riverfront bar," the menu from Chef Kyle Bailey will have seafood and a raw bar at its heart, with "a selection of straightforward New England classics, along with Bailey's own intepretations on the regional fare, and a few Chesapeake Bay-influenced specials."

The restaurant will also have a lineup of regional craft beers and a "creative cocktail program."

The Salt Line will join Whaley's, coming this spring, up river at the Lumber Shed, as seafood restaurants along the west bank of the Anacostia River. The name "Salt Line" apparently "pays homage to the delicate nature of DC's waterways, referring to the point in an estuary in which the water salinity transitions from salt to fresh water."

Dock 79 will have 305 rental units, and is expected to be finished later this year. It's on the site known in these parts as "Florida Rock," the old concrete plant footprint on the river just south of Nationals Park. It has 19,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space overall, facing both the Anacostia and the new plaza that is being built between it and Diamond Teague Park.

"Join Anacostia Riverkeeper and partner Living Classroom Foundation D.C., Thursday, March 31st from 5:00-10:00pm at Nando's PERi-PERi at The Yards. 40 percent of sales support Riverkeeper and Living Classroom Foundation Classrooms programs. It's a WIN WIN! Bring the flyer with you: link .

jdc says: (3/31/16 2:23 PM)Until there is a bit more development leading up to it, Dock 79 seems rather isolated to me and not something that would grab the casual pedestrian. I think any restaurant is going to need to do some legwork and advertise.

JD says: (3/31/16 3:06 PM)I think it depends on how visible it is from the Riverwalk/bridge from the Yards. There's a fair amount of foot traffic along there in the summertime. And then there's the ballpark, though yes, Salt Line will some pretty big signage that's visible from across the street to get Nats fans in.

And who knows, maybe they won't be all alone there by the time they open. (I'm not hinting about knowing anything, just that they probably won't be the only restaurant in Dock 79.)

JD says: (3/31/16 4:42 PM)In other restaurant news, I am interested to see that the ground-floor layout in the leasing brochure for 99 M (the office building at 1st and M) shows both Circa's 5,000 sf space (which we already knew about) and "New Bar Concept by Circa" in a 3,500 sf space just to Circa's south:

rdotis says: (4/2/16 6:38 PM)wrt "isolated" - a nearby Bardo location would have helped with foot traffic. Odd that parking, traffic planning, and especially pedestrian safety were considered reasons for not permitting the Bardo facility, but don't seem to be problems for this building. Are pedestrians any less safe crossing Potomac Ave from the ballpark's grand staircase to Dock79 than Bardo? One has to wonder what the backstory is wrt Bardo. Seems a little investigative journalism is in order.

JD says: (4/3/16 8:30 AM)I'm not sure how much "investigating" is really needed. The original plans for the site--2,000 people with live music and cheap beer--ended up with a lot of people against the notion, especially MPD and some residents of ANC 6D. So even when a smaller notion came along, there was a high bar to pass. Add to it Bill Stewart's less-than-optimal preparation (his initial "presentation" to ANC 6D about the plans was a hodge podge of "well, we kind of want to do this, but maybe that, or maybe the other thing, we don't really know, tell us what you want"--it got off on the wrong foot, and then the lack of a signed voluntary agreement with 6D made sure that they would protest. And then the Nationals being part of the protest as well was part of the nail in the coffin.

If you read the ABRA hearing transcripts I linked to in the various posts over the years (including the last one), you can see that it was going to take a whole lot for any outdoor-temporary-drinking-establishment venture to get approvals for this spot.

And the notion that some restaurants--which will probably have parking underneath Dock 79--would impact the community the way an outdoor beer garden would is a bit of a stretch. Somehow I doubt Buffalo Wild Wings and the Big Stick have the same impact that the Fairgrounds/Bullpen does.

Civil permit for grading, site demo, and installation of sediment erosion control measures
Site utilities, provide property. Stormwater management will be under subsequent permits.

1100 NEW JERSEY AVE SE

08/22/19
SQUARE 742 LLC / null

E1910802 /
SUPPLEMENTAL

1275 NEW JERSEY AVE SE

08/23/19
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / ROBERT K WILLETT; ROBERT K WILLETT

E1910857 /
SUPPLEMENTAL

09/03/19
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / PARKER HARRELL; PARKER HARRELL

SB1900287 /
CONSTRUCTION

We propose to furnish and install fifteen (15) gravel packed wells, fourteen (14) around the perimeter, and one (1) at the elevator pit. We will also be installing 3 monitoring wells and potentially 5 contingency wells. We will only pump from up to 15 wells at a time. All wells will be located in a mutually agreed layout. The wells will be installed by advancing up to a 10.25 I.D. hollow stem auge...

125 O ST SE

08/19/19
DC WATER / null

E1910631 /
SUPPLEMENTAL

79 POTOMAC AVE SE

08/19/19
RIVERFRONT HOLDINGS I LLC / null

E1910633 /
SUPPLEMENTAL

301 TINGEY ST SE C-1

09/03/19
SEFC 160, LLC / JEFF NOLD

AH1901221 /
CONSTRUCTION

Work will occur on 3rd Street SE between Tingey St SE & Water St SE. We will be assessing and providing a CCTV inspection of a sewer line.